Eben is the best lock to ever play the game...Brodie second and Victor 3rd...Meads 4th...I know this won't be the popular view, but it is what it is...Bakkies was top 10 at best....great player but no superstar.
Eben is the best lock to ever play the game...Brodie second and Victor 3rd...Meads 4th...I know this won't be the popular view, but it is what it is...Bakkies was top 10 at best....great player but no superstar.
Eben injured more than Dud….you are unhinged Rover. Eben is my vote for best lock of all time. With his athleticism he could easily play at 5 as well. He has everything Bakkies had, but can range out wide making open field tackles. And nobody is better at the front of the lineout. The appreciation for this great player has always been a bit muted, but the Pom commentators got it in the last test.
Should have been IRB player of the year for the second time coming this year!
Bakkies defence out wide and tracking back is top drawer. I've never seen an enforcer lock tackle like that. I was watching some 2003 and 2004 tests the past fortnight. It must be said that the physicality of the game has lessened immensely. Bakkies shunting mauls aside and ripping into runners. You don't see that anymore.
Willie John McBride, Martin Johnson, John Eales
Come now... Eben is good but above these three,thats a tough call in my book.
What is it with this generation and over hyping everything? It's either the absolute worst or absolute best. Eben is a fantastic player and a strong leader (the only leader in the current squad), but the best ever? Especially after this season, when he was outplayed a fair bit in the RC. I'd place him top 5 at #4 for the Boks. Matfield, Bakkies, Rossouw were better. Wiese after him. That's a fair assessment. We were legitimately the most physical side in the world with Bakkies. We are bossed around too much now. And this season our maul has looked creaky.
How short a memory some teen bloggers have.
Forgot players like Frik du Preez, Jan Pickard and Mark Andrews.
Shame on you young guys.
Danie was kept out by Bakkies. Otherwise he'd have been the premier enforcer in world rugby. Eben was outplayed in Bok All Black tests. That never happened to Bakkies.
Give this man a Bells...
"Mostert would be my second forward choice after Eben for any Springbok team selection."
If you can't see Mostert's value then I can't take you seriously.
Let's just keep in mind that most of the Mostert haters were also Kwagga haters until a short while ago.
Both guys have everything you would want in a player.
However, according to Dave, a 12 only has to be a loose forward really. The better a loose forward he is the better 12 he is. Naturally, a lock must be there to run over players. Dave would rather have a lock that makes one good bust a game than a lock that puts in 20 tackles and smothers the opposition so that guys like Marx and company can shine. In the same sentence, he'll tell you that rugby is s team sport.
Infallible logic.
Well where are these superstar locks now?? They are injured again and as always Rock solid Mostert is knocking away, taking names making sure the Job gets done.....the actual Evidence of the Past international season says it all....cant argue with the Facts.
Steph isn't a real lock or flank. He was ranked as the 27th best flank in SH rugby in 2019. He ranked bottom for every statistical measure, and video analysis revealed even more alarming incidents that stats do not account for. Steph is literally useless. Lood is even more useless. RG has the potential to be the best Bok lock of all time, that's if he can actually get on the field again. However, it was already apparent that he was too dynamic for backward Erasmus.
That's not a fact. It is a fact that he was ranked 29th of the top 30 SA ball carriers in Super Rugby that season. It is a fact that his test carries were worse than that. He ranked as the most porous defender by a considerable margin. Even when Mostert and Steph were close for game time, Mostert was only a little lower than Steph for total tackle attempts but a good 60% better for efficiency. It's a fact that Steph doesn't excel in any aspect of play. It is a fact that he is a liability on defence and a very unimpressive carrier. Those are the facts that are statistically correct and verifiable by film review. He makes the game more difficult for his teammates. I went and looked at the game from the perspective of pressure through phases, and Steph and Damian cause the most sustained pressure of all our players. He is an open gateway for runners. He can't counter ruck, can't pass, can't impose himself at restarts or line outs. He is nothing.
Yes, it is a fact he was selected world player of the year; it is also a fact that he wasn't even in the top 50 players in the world that year. The floor is yours...